Youth Network Council

Administrative Office
200 N Michigan Ave, Suite 400 | Chicago, IL 60601 | (312) 704-1257

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The hand that helps through community agencies

Service Brokerage


Current Projects

  • Juvenile Justice / Mental Health Initiative (JJMHI): Through a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), YNC coordinated twenty-two community-based youth serving agencies operating in thirty-eight sites throughout Illinois in a statewide, systemic effort to provide access to mental health services to youth who are at risk of involvement with the juvenile justice system. Support to sustain the operation during the upcoming fiscal year will be generated through Medicaid reimbursement and a grant from the state's Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Administration (JJDPA) State Advisory Group, the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission.


  • Pathways: An Independent Living Operation (ILO), funded by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). YNC, as the contractor, administers and coordinates the program, also serving as a liaison to DCFS. In this complex, collaborative effort, clinical oversight is provided through a subcontract with a mental health agency, and direct community support services to clients are subcontracted among four (4) community-based youth services agencies throughout Chicago and Cook County.


  • Pathways/TLP3: This addition to the continuum of Pathways services provides transitional housing for adolescents in the state's child welfare system. It is a collaborative effort among YNC and five (5) community-based youth services agencies, currently based in Chicago and Cook County.


  • Region V Training and Technical Assistance Program (RVTTAP): Funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) under the Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) program, YNC provides specialized training and technical assistance (T & TA) to RHY grantees in Illinois, and subcontracts with intermediaries in five other DHHS Region V states (IN, MI, MN, OH, and WI) while maintaining cooperative agreements with the other nine federally funded regional T & TA programs.


  • Making Mentoring Meaningful (MMM): YNC is implementing a three-year grant, funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, under their Mentoring Children of Prisoners (MCP) initiative. In partnership Chicago Youth Centers (CYC), MMM will provide volunteer adults in a positive and constructive mentoring relationship to children whose parents are incarcerated.


  • State and Local Youth Development Collaboration Demonstration Project (PYD): Through a subcontract with the Illinois Department of Human Services, from a grant by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, YNC is coordinating a five-year youth and community development effort in the Grand Boulevard neighborhood on Chicago's south side. This is one of only nine (9) programs of this type, nationally. The effort involves young people at the directorship level of the project, working with adult partners from community organizations, the faith community, schools, and businesses.


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